Dunk Base

Much to my surprise, as I was looking over scores from last night, the Cavaliers have nearly reached the halfway point in the season.  So I figured it was as good a time as any to do the midseason (or so) awards.  To me this makes much more sense than doing them at the trimester point (like a certain ESPN writer) because it allows for a large sample size and no one has to sit there scratching their heads as to why Pau Gasol is the MVP even though he’s only played about eight games.

This will also give everyone a bit of a primer on the second half of the season and maybe what to look forward to.  Often times when the voters are casting their ballots (like most things) the mentality is “what have you done for me lately.”  A player who was playing brilliantly at the beginning of the season could fail to make a dent with the voters because he tailed off slightly at the end of the season.  This can happen for several reasons but the main reasons are usually when hot teams either fade from the playoff picture or drop from the upper echelon of teams.  So we’ll chart who’s doing well at the moment and hopefully come back to it at the end of the season (but the more likely scenario is that I’ll forget all about this and do exactly what I warned against a few lines above).

First Team All-NBA

F – Lebron James

F – Carmelo Anthony

C – Tim Duncan

G – Steve Nash

G – Kobe Bryant

Looking at this group (and I’ll get to the middle there that probably has you going “hey wait a second…”), it’s an interesting mishmash of new generation players and old ones.  I’ll start with the player I want to talk about the least.  Kobe Bryant is playing same way that he’s been playing forever and that’s always good enough to get him a First Team bid.  Although with that being said, he could very easily drop the Second or Third team if is current play is more a sign of lasting problem than just a slump (not saying that it is, but it’s something that should be considered).  Steve Nash is playing on another level at the moment, even higher than his MVP (or MVPesque) seasons.  It’s different this time around because he has to carry the Suns completely on offense, as he’s not afforded the offense weapons that he’s had in the past.  Consider that he’s playing less than 34 minutes a game and putting up 19 points and 11 assists, it’s a phenomenal season so far.  Carmelo Anthony is having his best season as a pro and seems to finally be realizing his potential at small forward.  He’s missed some time this season, but the Nuggets haven’t looked the same when he’s not on the floor.  The Nuggets have a chance to crash the Finals party with Melo out there and no chance when he’s not.  Lebron James is the undisputed best player in the league right now and is a First Team lock until one of his legs fall off.  Tim Duncan will probably get the nod at forward when it’s all said and done, but there’re a few reasons why I’m putting him at center here.  One, I have been an ardent supporter of the “Tim Duncan is the Greatest Power Forward ever” coalition, but if he’s made the transition to center, especially if they insist on starting 6’4” DeJuan Blair at the other big spot.  Two, he’s been playing at a fantastic pace and he’s having his best season from a statistical perspective, even though he’s not the same player.  Three, Anthony in my mind has to be on the First Team this season, so it was easy enough to make room.  Four, Dwight Howard has not been playing like the best center in the league (but I’ll get to that later).

Second Team All-NBA

F – Dirk Nowitzki

F – Chris Bosh

C – Dwight Howard

G – Brandon Roy

G – Chris Paul

I feel a little bad for putting Nowtizki on the Second Team but despite his team’s record so far this season, he’s been playing erratically slightly.  Truth be told, I think people are only starting to appreciate the kind of unique player Nowitzki is, it’s just too bad this wasn’t necessarily the case when he was actually playing out of his mind a few seasons ago.  Chris Bosh has been playing awesomely this season on a team that probably no longer deserves his services.  Which is fine, he could be headed to Houston or (*gulp*) Los Angeles (seriously, do they need any more hand outs?), and if he keeps up his level of play on a contender (borderline or otherwise), it could propel him into a higher tier.  Dwight Howard will probably get the bid as the First Team center, but he sure hasn’t been playing like it.  Don’t misunderstand me, he’s still a great player but he’s not on the same level as he was last year.  His offensive game is still dragging and he’s a half step slow on defense this season.  It’s still could enough for the best legitimate center in the NBA (only because Yao Ming isn’t around).  Brandon Roy started off the season on kind of a slow note but since then he’s flipped the switch when the Blazers have needed him the most.  They’re still on pace for 50 wins this season despite all the injuries, which is mind boggling when you stop to think about it (keep in mind that they’re starting Juwan Howard at center).  On the other side of the coin is Chris Paul.  He started off the season like gang busters but is having a little trouble coming back from an ankle injury.  It’s limited his ability to get into the lane and finish at the rim, but he’s conserving his energy during games and taking over when it matters, propelling the Hornets turnaround.

Third Team All-NBA

F – Josh Smith

F – Kevin Durant

C – God, I don’t know, fill someone in.

G – Rajon Rondo

G – Dwyane Wade

I have absolutely no idea who to put at center here.  Lopez seems like an easy choice, but I feel weird putting a player on a 3-34 team on the All-NBA because if he was really that good, his team wouldn’t be historically craptacular.  Horford seems like a solid choice but I can’t put two Hawks on here when there’s only one Celtic, Cav, and Magic player respectively.  Bogut works too, but he needs to step it up more and get the Bucks into the playoffs (if he stays healthy and the Bucks make the playoffs, he’s in).  Josh Smith is here for the Hawks because he’s the reason they’ve reached another level.  Johnson keeps that in the right direction but Smith playing well (and smart) is the reason their moving.  Kevin Durant is beginning his ascent into the stratosphere and great things are further expected of him.  Dwyane Wade will probably be named to a higher team when the season’s done, but he hasn’t been playing with the same energy that he was last season (although it’s hard to hold that against him considering no one could be able to keep that up) and has noticeably taken some games off.  Rondo is the lone Celtics representative.  He’s been the most effective player and has been the one to keep the team afloat despite injuries to Garnett and Pierce (and Daniels, I guess).  He’s been able to take his efficiency to another level.

Guys I’d Like to Include

F – Zach Randolph

F – Kevin Love

C – David Lee

G – Deron Williams

G – Tyreke Evans

Evans will get a mention later on, but he’s been playing phenomenally for a rather suspect Kings team and has actually made them relevant.  Williams’ is the odd man out with the guards.  He’s not quite as important as Rondo, Roy, and Nash, and his production is less than Paul and Wade despite his team having a better record (well, it’s below Nash and Roy’s too), and he’s never going to be higher than Bryant.  Make no mistake though, he’s one of the top 15 players in the league.  Zach Randolph is having a season that’s rather confusing if you’re at all familiar with him as a player.  He’s playing smart, taking good shots, not turning the ball over, and crashing the offensive boards like a man possessed.  Kevin Love has been playing amazing even though his team has been playing so awful.  He’s letting Dwight Howard know that his rebounding crown is no longer safe.  If the Knicks make the playoffs this year (as depressing as that sounds they’re only a game and a half off), David Lee will probably be the Third Team center.  He’s having his best season, his rebounding is as stellar as it always is but he’s added more to offensive game including a jump shot and more court awareness.

All Rookie Team

Tyreke Evans

Ty Lawson

Brandon Jennings

Omri Casspi

Stephen Curry

All Rookie teams have always been kind of weird.  A while back they stopped adhering to any semblance of a line-up structure because it was just too hard to fit them to actual positions.  I’m not explaining this choices because they should be rather self explanatory, these are the five best rookies this season with honorable mentions going to Johnny Flynn and Taj Gibson (James Harden will get a nod when his minutes per game jumps up).  Truth be told, there are only 12 rookies this season averaging 20 or more minutes, which probably means Wesley Matthews and Terrance Williams will get the boot when the All Rookie teams come around (although with the way both their minutes have been shrinking, they probably won’t even qualify by my standards).  If Blake Griffin ever makes it back, he’ll probably make a run at cracking this group.

All Defensive Team

Josh Smith

Gerald Wallace

Dwight Howard

Thabo Sefolosha

Rajon Rondo

Rondo is the best defensive point guard in the game right now.   Although that’s kind of faint praise considering that point guard is the easiest position to cover up and the easiest position to exploit if there’s no one to back them up (he’s still the best though).  The Thunder are one of the best defensive units in the NBA and a big reason for that is because Sefolosha has been able to effectively man up each team’s best wing player (if not lock down on several occasions).  Howard is still a half step slow this and he’s not as dominant as he was last season.  Still, he leads the league in defensive rating, second defensive win shares (even though I still haven’t been able to see why win shares are functionally arbitrary), leads the league in defensive rebounding, second in defensive rebounding percentage, and leads the league in blocks.  So this is his spot until otherwise noted.  Wallace is leading the team with the second best defensive rating in the league so he gets this spot and Josh Smith is finally putting his defensive skills to good use.

Rookie of the Year

Tyreke Evans:  As I pointed out early, there really isn’t any other choice here.  Brandon Jennings made an early bid to make everyone pay attention with his 55 point game against the Warriors and in a way that was the best thing to happen to Evans (or the rookies in general).  Before Jennings exploded everyone was just kind of waiting around for Blake Griffin to show up.  After the game, it made everyone take notice of the rookies that were playing and eventually Evans rose to the top.  All season he’s been consistent and has rarely succumbed to the “yep, he’s definitely a rookie” game.  In fact very few rookies have played as well as him over the last decade (especially considering he’s playing out of the position) and there’s no real indication that he’s going to slow up this season, save an injury.

Most Improved Player

Josh Smith: I really hate this award because it never makes any sense.  Do you give it to the second year player who finally realized his potential or the guy who didn’t really get playing time before but is now playing competently?  So I decided to for the guy who was a solid player before hand and finally turned the corner and started to realize his potential and that guy is Josh Smith.  Before this season it was never quite clear whether it was going to come together for him.  It seemed like he was always going to be taking bad shots, making careless turnovers, or just not focusing all the time on the defensive end.  But this season, he’s eliminated three pointers from his game (as in completely, he’s only attempted 3 all season), he’s cut down on his turnovers (the lowest since his second season and well under 3 a game), and he’s focusing on defense all the time.  No one else has been able to make as big a leap as Smith this season in changing the perception of him as a player.

Sixth Player of the Year

Carl Landry:  This is the third easiest award to select behind MVP and Rookie of the year.  Landry was already extremely efficient coming off the bench his two previous seasons, but he’s taken it to a new level this season.  In less than 27 minutes of a play per game, Landry is averaging nearly 17 points off the bench (second on the Rockets behind Aaron Brooks).  What’s puts him ahead of players like Jason Terry and Jamal Crawford, is that where they’re just complimenting the team’s stars (Nowitzki in Dalls, Johnson, Smith, and Horford in Atlanta), Landry is actually carrying the Rockets when he’s on the floor.  This is going to be pretty big accomplishment if the Rockets can actually hold on and make the playoffs.

Defensive Player of the Year

Thabo Sefolosha: Dwight Howard is the easy answer (and at the end of the season, probably the right one), but we’re not about the easy answers here.  Sefolosha seems like kind of an out of left field choice, but he’s been instrumental to the Thunder this season.  One of the reasons the Thunder are in the playoff picture at this point in the season is because of their improved defense and Sefolosha is a big part of that.  Every game this season, he’s been required to guard the opposing team’s best wing player and he has given fits to such players like Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Brandon Roy, and Joe Johnson.  He might not be there at the end of the season, but he’s my pick right now.

Coach of the Year

Scott Brooks:  The only two other choices I’ve considered were Rick Adelman and Paul Westphal.  Adelman has done a great job with a Rockets team that doesn’t have a go to player and Westphal is exceeding expectations with a Kings team that was expected to be much worse than it currently is.  Brooks though has completely turned the Thunder around this season and made them into a playoff contender, far ahead of schedule.

MVP

Lebron James: To me at least, this is the most obvious choice of the bunch and the past week or so has just cemented it.  There are a few other “contenders” but no one is really close to Lebron at this point.  Many would have you believe that there’s a Lebron vs Kobe debate, but these past few games have really highlighted in my mind that there is no debate at this point.  Lebron just affects every aspect of the game at this point, and while he has a number of solid pieces around them, they’d be hard pressed to stand up as even a playoff team without him.  Last season was supposed to be the pinnacle of Lebron’s powers, but he’s either equal to the task or surpassing it.  He’s even starting to add elements of a post game to his repertoire, which is a scary proposition.  This should be his second MVP of his career, and it’s not going to end here.

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